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3/4/05-Hockey
St. Mary's Clips Cranbrook in OT
Eaglets finally get past Cranes in playoffs
By KEITH DUNLAP Of The Daily Oakland Press
ORCHARD LAKE - It couldn't have been more symbolic that Orchard Lake St. Mary's senior Patrick Nagorsen was jubilantly carried off the ice on the shoulders of fellow students Thursday.
Not only were his peers returning the favor after he helped carry the team on his shoulders, but they showed their appreciation toward Nagorsen for lifting an eternal monkey that's been on the shoulders of the St. Mary's program.
In a delightful, well-played regional semifinal game between the top two ranked teams in Division 3, Nagorsen scored the game-winner with 6:14 left in overtime to propel No. 2 St. Mary's to a 4-3 win over No. 1 and defending state champion Bloomfield Hills Cranbrook Kingswood before an overflow crowd at St. Mary's.
Before Nagorsen snapped a perfect shot underneath the crossbar from the right faceoff circle after entering Cranbrook's zone with speed, St. Mary's had never beaten Cranbrook in 11 previous tries in the playoffs and had been eliminated by the Cranes the last four years in regional play.
The constant failure against Cranbrook over the years has been a source of frustration for the Nagorsen family, too.
"It's a gorilla off our back," said Nagorsen, who added two assists to his game-winner. "I've had three (older) brothers that have gone here to play hockey and none of them beat them, so I've got bragging rights now."
With the Cranbrook obstacle finally behind them, the Eaglets (16-6-3) now are the team to beat the rest of the way as they seek their first state title in school history.
Nagorsen and the Eaglets caught arguably an overdue break in overtime, when the puck went around the boards in the Eaglets zone and hit the referee, which caused the puck to go directly to Nagorsen in full stride in the neutral zone.
"When I saw Nagorsen carrying the puck, I knew it was going to be a goal," St. Mary's head coach Brian Klanow said. "He just blew it over his shoulder."
The teams went back and forth all night, with St. Mary's leading 1-0 after the first period on a goal by junior Krystian Dziubinski.
Cranbrook came on strong in the second, taking a 2-1 lead into the third period on a goal by junior Casey Wellman and a tally by senior Mike Fenkell on a two-man advantage.
St. Mary's made it 2-2 with 12:11 left on a nice play by Nagorsen, who kept the puck in the Cranbrook zone and sprung senior teammate Zack Doyen all alone towards the Cranbrook net, which resulted in a goal after Doyen roofed a backhand below the crossbar.
Cranbrook (21-5) regained the lead at 3-2 on a goal by sophomore Dean Chelios with 9:00 remaining, but Nagorsen set up senior Maciej Sulka's goal from between the circles that tied it at 3-3 with 5:26 remaining, setting the stage for the overtime finish.
"This is the fifth year in a row we've had great games, all of which could've gone either way," Cranbrook head coach Andy Weidenbach said. "We've been on the up end of it for the last four years. Now they got a nice break and Nagorsen buried it."
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